home sweet home ; teddy & other huffs!

[EMMALINE BADDOCK]

Emmaline absolutely loved the Hufflepuff common room. It was totally, completely, perfectly cozy and comfortable and just home. She’d been in the Gryffindor tower maybe once or twice. Knowing people gets you places, y’know. It was nice, sure, but this common room would always have a special place in her heart. So many things had happened in here the past five years. Lots of studying, plenty of naps and a couple games of Truth and Dare. Careful Miss Emma always chose Truth, of course, and even that got her in a few spots of trouble. As of now? She was simply relaxing by the fire, enjoying the warmth after a much to cold day of classes. She’d had Care of Magical Creatures (outside), Herbology (greenhouses, outside), and Potions (dungeons). Her fingers were actually numb. So, here she was, in a tank top and shorts, curled up in a plush armchair. A book sat on the table in front of her incase she got bored and along with that was a Licorice Wand for incase she got the munchies. Emmaline was well-prepared for a nice relax-fest until dinner time.

Emmaline wondered where the others were. Her housemates, her closest friends. The common room wasn’t usually this empty. There were a few first and second years over in the corner, studying, but she wasn’t going to bother them. If they needed her, they could say something. Emmaline sometimes saw herself as an older sister to the younger kids. She looked out for them, helped them on their work, and certainly didn’t let them get into trouble. It was that protective side of her, taking care of her housemates, her second family. A quiet sigh passed her lips and she reached around, grabbing a blanket off the back of the chair. She wrapped it around her shoulders and she held her hands out towards the fire. She really loved this place.

[theodorelupin]

MY FRIENDS ARE A DIFFERENT BREED MY FRIENDS ARE EVERYTHING

MAKE IT LAST TAKE IT SLOW WE GOT IT ALL FIGURED OUT SO TONIGHT

Ted Lupin was flustered.

However, for him, that was far from typical. Albeit, he wasn't the calm sort, at all, but lately anything problematic that came his way agitated him. He liked randomness and spontaneity, but these surprises were too startling for him to keep himself together. Nothing was going according to plan. It made him nervous and far more accident-prone because he was stressesd and worried about causing another accident or mishap that that’s exactly what ended up happening in a reverse peripeteia way. As best he could, Teddy tried to keep his world under control, at least until classes were over and he could crash safely inside the Hufflepuff common room.

Which was why today wasn't exactly going well for him. It had started out normal. He'd woken up on time, had a bit of cereal for breakfast (though he had considered making himself an omelet down in the Kitchens), and he'd gone to his morning classes. He'd spent break in the courtyard as usual, chatting with people from his house. But then afternoon classes had begun, and that was where his problems had begun.

It had been in Potions, not one of Teddy's best subject. It was comparable to cooking, in some ways. But it was methodical. It was scientific. There was very little art in crafting potions as there was in creating a delicious dish. Teddy was always wanting to throw in a little something to give his potion a kick, but that was unadvisable. He had done it before, and the results had been disastrous. Not to mention, his professer, who though preferring his favorites, was generally a kind and helpful teacher, had looked down on Teddy with a mixture of shock, amusement, and bewilderment. It had been terribly embarrassing, in short.

That said, Teddy was not a fan of Potions. What was more, he hated studying for the class. It was utterly boring. So, that afternoon, when they were given a pop quiz, Teddy was clearly out of his element. Not only did he loathe surprises like that, he also hadn't studied. It was practically a guaranteed failure. For fifteen minutes, Teddy had sweated over the questions. What were the main ingredients in Amorentia? What was a side effect of Re'em's blood? What is Erumpent fluid used in? Teddy was forced to do a lot of guessing, not being one to cheat. But then all their quizzes had been summoned up to his desk and they were allowed to open their books open to the next chapter. Rolling them up cheerfully, the Potions master announced that they would have the results next class. Teddy wasn't particularly looking forward to seeing what mark he had gotten. He'd had that dreaded feeling of knowing you had failed while he was taking it. It was hopeless.

And yes, Teddy was freaking out. He couldn't wait for class to get out. He already could tell his cheeks were growing red and his hair was aflame as an orange-red color with embarrassment. Merlin. Why did everything he thought have to come out onto his hair and cheeks? It was a broadcast to the world. Honestly. Why hadn't he studied? He really needed to get his priorities straight and stop sneaking into Victoire’s common room at night when he could be studying. He would probably need potions once he was out on his own, as much as he disliked it. What if he got sick? He would need a Pepperup Potion. And as for when he became a field agent as an Auror, he was definitely going to need potions for that. He was allowing himself to fail! His leg began to bounce under the table, uncontrollably, warranting him an evil look from Rhea Arzamas, who sat a few places down. Mind, she often gave him evil looks. This one was particularly wicked, though.

Merlin, he needed to get out of there. He could barely focus enough to take notes the whole class, his parchment a mess of scribbles and scratched out words. He packed up his things a good five minutes before class ended, his blue eyes trained on the clock, just watching the seconds tick by. So. Slowly.

When class finally ended, Teddy was one of the first to bolt out the door. His face was so warm from a state of constant blushing, he decided he probably ought to just go straight to the Library and study, darn it. On second thought, Teddy didn’t want to risk causing another mishap in the corridor by knocking into a second-year, his hair inexplicably changing to chaotic hues, breaking an ancient vase, ect, and best just go to the common room for some rest. Today was exhausting; he couldn’t wait to get to sleep and get it out of his system. He raced to where the Hufflepuff dormitories were located on the other side of the dungeon, his book bag bouncing against his hip as he hurried. He kept his head down, avoiding revealing his red face to anyone if possible. He'd finally reached the right corridor. And now to the Common Room. He hoped there wouldn’t be very many people inside; as if he needed anymore embarrassment.

Once through the doors, he had looked up and found Emma sitting by the fireplace with a book in her lap. Teddy couldn’t have been more happy to see her at that moment than he was now as he let his bookbag drop loudly onto the ground and fell onto the leather couch next to her. He was beat. He didn’t want to talk about it, but he knew she would ask him anyways and he would have to go on to tell his miserable experience and humiliation throughout the day.

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[EMMALINE BADDOCK]

It hadn’t been long before Emmaline got bored of just, well, sitting there. It wasn’t like her, really, to get tired of one thing so quickly. But this was just sitting, staring at the fire. So, she’d leaned forward and snatched up the book for some light reading. Enchantment in Baking was a cookbook she’d found in the library by complete luck. Cookbooks apparently weren’t very popular at the school because upon further investigation, she’d only found two more. It might’ve seemed strange to any other, but this was normal for Emmaline. Reading a cookbook, anyway. It was a sort of inspiration for her. It inspired her to bake more often. As of late, she hadn’t had much time to do so and this actually made her sort of sad. What with her classes and essays and O.W.Ls, she could barely make it to the kitchens anymore. Emmaline forced the thoughts away and focused on the recipe she was currently open to. It was actually a dessert served here at Hogwarts. Trifle had been very good the first time Emmaline had tried it and it is, to this day, her favorite dessert. Until now, she’d had no idea how it was prepared and hadn’t even thought of visiting the kitchens to learn. Now, though, she had this spiffy book. Oh, she loved reading.

There was a loud noise to her left and she jumped, dropping her book in the process. A tiny yelp escaped her lips before she realized it was Teddy. “For Merlin’s sake,” she murmured, pressing a hand to her chest as if this would slow her now racing heart. “You scared me half to death,” she told him, reaching over her legs to grab the book from the floor. Darn, she’d lost her page. Setting the book back on the table, she turned so her body was mostly facing him and leaned forward, elbows on her knees, chin propped up on her hands. He looked exhausted. Well, not so much exhausted as... what was a good word? In a tizzy? That wasn’t a word but it brought a small smile to her face. Really, though, she was starting to feel concerned. Her eyebrows furrowed together and she watched him for a moment before saying anything. “Are you alright?” she asked, at a lack of words. What if he didn’t want to talk about it? Emmaline would hate for him to have to relive something he wanted to forget. Thinking about it, Emmaline hadn't really been paying attention to Teddy during their classes today. Had it been a rough day for him? More concerned than before, she crossed her arms, resting those on her knees and leaned forward some more. "You weren't prepared for the Potions pop quiz, were you?" she asked, her tone a strange mix between amused, scolding, and guilty.

[theodorelupin]

MY FRIENDS ARE A DIFFERENT BREED MY FRIENDS ARE EVERYTHING

MAKE IT LAST TAKE IT SLOW WE GOT IT ALL FIGURED OUT SO TONIGHT

“For Merlin’s sake. You scared me half to death.” Go figure, he thought sulkingly and screwed up his eyes to look over at her from his position on the couch. He reached behind him for a pillow and proceeded to put it over his face to smoother himself with which he added miserable whines and noises that came out muffled from the pillow stuffing absorbing the sound waves. “Are you alright?” "Arrrghhh-mmfph.."He wanted today to just end already. Teddy knew he was pouting, but that's all he felt like doing at the moment, so darn it, that's what he was going to do right there in the Common Room for all the others to witness. On second thought, perhaps he better just talk to Emma, she would make it better; he didn't need the extra embarrassment, and acting like a two-year old moping around was humiliating on a normal day.

Teddy removed the pillow slowly from his face and let his arm fall limply to the ground with it. His facial expresion of I-just-went-through-hell-and-back must have said it all, so he just sadly shook his head at her. "You weren't prepared for the Potions pop quiz, were you?" she asked him. It was eerie how well she could read him at times, or maybe she just knew him very well because they'd been best mates for years. Teddy gave a dramatic sigh and rolled to his stomach so that his face was hidden by couch cushions. Honestly, he rarely took the time to study unless it was for something very important and Potions was one of those classes he knew he'd probably never really get the hang of so he didn't put in nearly as much effort to study for that class as he would others. He didn't feel like answering that question yet since his head felt like it was going to implode with pressure. "Did you study? I thought it was a pop quiz; how would I know we were going to be tested today?"

He sat up and reached for his head as it protested loudily against his sudden movement. "I'm sorry Em, I've had a dreadful day. I didn't mean to snap at you," apologizing quickly after thinking about how that must have sounded. He didn't mean to hurt her feelings any by his carelessness, but it seemed like everything he intended to do today had the exact opposite effect so he was on his guard for making another mistake like that again. "What the devil are you reading? Is that a recipe book?" he asked finally noticing the book on her lap now that he was done feeling sorry for himself and gave a soft sort of laugh at the book in question. Sometimes Emma was such a nerd, he adored it. Seeing her read the book made him remember to make a mental note to himself to get into the library some time to study. Perhaps he could ask to re-take the pop-quiz or make up for the poor mark.

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[EMMALINE BADDOCK]

Emmaline watched, a bit amused, as he pressed the pillow to his face and proceeded to answer her question with a whiny moan. “Oh, Teddy,” she murmured, shaking her head and grinning. The two seemed so different sometimes, she wondered how they could stand each other. It was easy, though, Teddy was her best friend and he’d been so for years. Different or not, nothing would change how she felt about him or their friendship. Emmaline waited patiently for him to remove the pillow and answer her next inquiry. Thinking now, she realized it wasn’t the best of questions. You couldn’t necessarily study for a pop quiz. And Teddy knew that, as well. Her smile turned into a sort of pout and she sighed, a bit irritably, before pulling a hand through her hair. “I know, I know. I just meant, oh, maybe studying in general.” Emmaline could be such a nag sometimes, really, but she was just looking out for him. Or anybody else for that matter.

His apology made her feel a little less annoyed and she smiled at him. “It was dreadful,” she answered, “and I also apologize for snapping at you.” Maybe her day hadn’t been as horrid but it sure hadn’t been fun. These were the worst class days. Why couldn’t they have had Charms? Or Transfiguration, perhaps. Emmaline was looking forward to those. Emmaline glanced down to the book she’d been reading. Her cheeks burned with a sudden blush and she clutched the book to her chest, as if she could hide the title. She couldn’t quite understand why this was so embarrassing but it was and that’s all that mattered at the time. After a moment, she looked to him and stuck her tongue out, acting quite childish. “Yes, yes it is and it’s inspiring me for my next baking marathon,” she said, an almost immature tone beneath her voice. Emmaline let the book rest on her legs again and opened it, flipping through the pages. She stopped on one and held it out towards Teddy, showing him the picture and recipe. “Look, Victoria Sponge. Yummmmmm.” She wasn't entirely sure what the cake was all about. In fact, she was quite sure she'd never heard of it. It looked quite good though and she planned on maybe making it someday.

{lawl victoria sponge.}

[Christian Andre Lefoux]

I’m the kind to sit up in his room.
Heart sick an’ eyes filled up with gloom.

Christian was spending his winter holidays the way he had spent all of the one's prior. He was lying on his bed in the boys Hufflepuff Dormitory and staring at the ceiling of his four poster bed. The curtains were pulled around him, the way they had been since break began. He rolled over and stared at the yellow curtains for a moment, debating on whether his hunger was enough to get him to leave his room. It didn't take him very long to decide that it was. He pulled back the curtains of his four poster and pulled his shirt off of the bed and tugged it on, not bothering to tuck it in or straighten his tie. It was the Christmas holiday's after all, were the professors going to dock points now? He seriously doubted it.

After taking a quick look in the mirror and making sure his tousled hair was in good order, he strode across the room and out to the common room. When he was halfway down the staircase, a third year Hufflepuff informed him that he didn't really want to go to the Great Hall as someone's dinner didn't agree with them...that or someone had let off a stink bomb. Christian sighed and continued down the stairs. It wouldn't really kill him to interact with the other Hufflepuffs for once, would it? He guessed not, he assumed it was time to take a better interest in the lives of his House mates.

When he arrived at the bottom of the stairs, he saw that the Common Room was almost deserted. All except for Emmaline and Teddy, anyway. Christian thought about sitting down close to where they were and actually starting a conversation, but they seemed rather intent upon their conversation, so instead, he took a chair and pulled a book out from the inside pocket of his robes. No, this wouldn't kill him at all.

I don’t know what you’ve done to me,
But I know this much is true:
I wanna do bad things with you.